Author: Ruth Ahmedzai Kemp

Literary translator from Arabic, German and Russian into English
German, non-fiction, Translation

The Weather Detective: Rediscovering Nature’s Secret Signs

  The internationally bestselling author of The Hidden Life of Trees shows how we can decipher nature’s secret signs by studying the weather.In this first-ever English translation of The Weather Detective, Peter Wohlleben uses his long experience and deep love of nature to help decipher the weather and our local environments in a completely new and compelling way. Analyzing the explanations for everyday questions and … Continue reading The Weather Detective: Rediscovering Nature’s Secret Signs

Ruth Ahmedzai Kemp
Arabic, Fiction, German, new, non-fiction, Russian, Translation

What I translated in 2017… and what’s out in 2018

This year has been an extremely busy one with some very enjoyable and satisfying books to translate. I’ve fulfilled a personal ambition: I was hoping to translate one novel from each of my three languages by the time I was 40. I’ve done that a bit early (not telling you how early!). It’s also been a longstanding ambition to get into children’s books, and I’ve … Continue reading What I translated in 2017… and what’s out in 2018

Ruth Ahmedzai Kemp3 Comments
Fiction, new, Russian, Translation

Leningrad Tales: The Raven’s Children 

  Leningrad, 1938. When Shura and Tanya’s parents and little brother suddenly disappear in the middle of the night, it’s rumoured that they have been taken by the mysterious Black Raven – and that their parents were spies. Tanya and Shura are determined to find their family – and so Shura decides to hand himself in to the Raven. He is taken to the Grey … Continue reading Leningrad Tales: The Raven’s Children 

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Arabic, Fiction, new, Translation

Banthology: Stories from Unwanted Nations

This urgent and timely collection brings together seven specially commissioned stories from the so-called ‘banned nations’: Iran, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Written in response to Trump’s 2017 travel ban, it showcases new works by previously unplatformed writers, exploring the emotional and personal impact of all restrictions on movement – both existing restrictions and potential future bans. Covering a range of approaches – … Continue reading Banthology: Stories from Unwanted Nations

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Arabic, Fiction, Translation

A Crime in Ramallah, Abbad Yahya

The Words without Borders July 2017 issue “Divided Countries” includes an excerpt I’ve translated of A Crime in Ramallah by Palestinian author Abbad Yahya. In this excerpt, Noor  – one of three narrators in the novel – remembers his adolescence in Palestine, marked by the second intifada. You can also listen to the extract on SoundCloud and read the original text in Arabic on the Words without Borders website. The … Continue reading A Crime in Ramallah, Abbad Yahya

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Fiction, German, Translation

Apple Cake and Baklava

Apple Cake and Baklava, by Kathrin Rohmann, is a novel for late primary kids and early secondary, dealing with asylum, how it feels to be a refugee, parallels between WWII and Syria, grandmas, recipes, a lost walnut that means the world and a budding friendship between Max and Leila. I love this book and can’t wait to see it in UK schools and libraries from … Continue reading Apple Cake and Baklava

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German, non-fiction, Translation

Farewell to the Horse: The Final Century of Our Relationship

*** BBC Radio 4’s Book of the Week from 29 May! *** *** Sunday Times History book of the year 2017 *** “Farewell to the Horse is an engaging, brilliantly written and moving discussion of what horses once meant to us. Cities, farmland, entire industries were once shaped  as much by the needs of horses as humans. The intervention of horses was fundamental in countless historical events. … Continue reading Farewell to the Horse: The Final Century of Our Relationship

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